Noem rebuffs farm bill critics

Far right considers it welfare, some on left call congresswoman hypocrite

Oct. 26, 2013

Doug Sombke

Written by

Kristi Noem

More

ADVERTISEMENT

As a Republican from a farm state who is now working on a farm bill compromise, Rep. Kristi Noem sits at the center of an ideological and regional divide.

The farm bill always is important in a heavily agricultural state, and West River ranchers in particular are looking to Congress for relief from a devastating blizzard that killed tens of thousands of livestock.

“The farm bill has kept a very ample supply of healthy, nutritious food, fiber and fuel to this country,” said Doug Sombke, president of the South Dakota Farmers Union. “The sooner they get it done, the better it will be for our livestock producers.”

At the same time, Noem faces pressure from conservative activists who call the farm bill “a giant welfare program,” which funnels taxpayer money to low-income families and big businesses alike.

“The farm bill for years is basically an unholy alliance between big agribusiness and urban legislators, where they come together and they combine the two issues so each will vote for the other’s special projects,” said Barney Keller, communications director for the Club For Growth, a conservative activist group.

In the middle of it all, as much as anyone in Congress, is Noem. In the recent government shutdown, she sided with conservatives by voting against a compromise. But as a member of the conference committee seeking a happy medium between House and Senate legislation, she said she’s working all-out to reach a deal on the farm bill.

“We’ve got to get it across the finish line, and that’s what I’m focused on now — how we can get that agreement done,” Noem said.

Noem’s place on the committee is “a great thing for South Dakota. She’s really fought hard to get that farm bill going,” said Scott VanderWal, president of the South Dakota Farm Bureau.

That high-profile position also could boost Noem’s political stature back home.

“I would think it would be something in Kristi Noem’s favor, simply being on the conference committee,” said Jon Schaff, a political science professor at Northern State University. “She can say, ‘I am involved in the negotiations with what’s going on in agriculture.’ ”

(Page 2 of 3)

But Schaff noted Noem’s close involvement could backfire if the farm bill crashes and burns just when demand for it from South Dakota producers is at its highest, in the wake of massive livestock losses West River.

“If what comes out of conference is not amenable to South Dakota farmers, then it makes her look even worse,” Schaff said. “She ends up looking like an advocate who’s got no power.”

Noem said she’s aware of the possibility voters could blame her if a farm bill doesn’t get done.

“I do believe they’ll also look at the efforts that I put into it and evaluate how hard I’ve worked to make sure that it gets there,” she said.

Replacing five-year-old policy

The farm bill has had a torturous history. It’s meant as a replacement for a 2008 farm bill that expired last year. The Senate passed its version of the legislation, but House Speaker John Boehner never brought the measure up for a vote. This summer, Boehner finally brought a different version of the farm bill to the House floor — only to watch it fail.

At the core of the turmoil is a dispute over food stamps, the largest portion of the bill’s spending. House Republicans have pushed for deep cuts to the aid program, which has grown rapidly since the economic downturn began. Democrats in the Senate insist on a more modest reduction, while some Republicans think even the controversial cuts in the House are not enough.

Noem said bridging the food stamp divide is key to passing a farm bill, and she predicted a compromise is possible.

“There will have to be a number in the middle that we’ll have to arrive at, and that’ll be a good thing,” she said.

The Senate farm bill cuts $4 billion in 10 years from food stamps. Last year’s House bill cut $20 billion from the program, while this year’s version cut almost $40 billion.

Noem: Maybe less than House wanted

Noem said conservatives who pressed for steeper cuts won’t get everything they wanted.

“I don’t expect that we’ll end up with the same amount of the House cuts,” Noem said.

But Noem said one potential barrier to the farm bill’s passage probably would not apply. The measure, she said, wouldn’t be subject to the informal “Hastert Rule,” which said bills that aren’t supported by most members of the majority party shouldn’t be brought up for a vote.

(Page 3 of 3)

“All of my conversations with the majority leader (Eric Cantor) and with the Speaker, they want this to be a very bipartisan bill,” Noem said. “I expect it to be scheduled for a vote and that Republicans and Democrats will be able to support it.”

That would mean a farm bill that appeals to a mix of Democrats and Republicans could get a vote and passage over the objections of the far right wing of the party.

Even with this help, though, there are plenty of obstacles. Partisan tensions are high in the wake of a government shutdown. The standoff was ended with a last-minute bill that reopened the government and raised the debt ceiling without the major concessions Republicans such as Noem had demanded.

Noem voted against the deal — a controversial decision given the unpopularity of the shutdown and the danger of a potential default. She acknowledged receiving criticism from constituents unhappy with her vote, but said her “no’ vote was justified because the final bill didn’t deal with “continued deficit spending.”

Sombke is among the critics.

“She wants to cut government, and yet she wants (government) to be able to help our producers,” Sombke said. “You can’t have both things.”

In an email, Noem’s chief of staff, Jordan Stoick, said the House-passed farm bill “provided a strong safety net for farmers and ranchers ... while saving taxpayers $40 billion.”

Corinna Robinson, a Democrat who is planning to run against Noem, was not available to discuss the farm bill. In a statement Thursday, she criticized Congress for the shutdown and for missing the deadline on the farm bill but didn’t mention Noem.

Voting against the deal put Noem on the same side as groups such as Club For Growth, which also opposed the deal to end the shutdown. But Keller said his group isn’t happy with Noem’s advocacy for the farm bill — and might back a primary challenge to Noem if one emerged.

“In general, we’re always interested in supporting an upgrade from an anti-growth vote to a pro-growth one,” Keller said, when asked about Noem.

In an email, Stoick dismissed the Club For Growth as an “out-of-state political interest group.” and referenced a time in May when Keller accidentally tweeted about Noem representing North Dakota.

Schaff said Noem does not have to worry much about national conservative groups such as Club For Growth angry about her farm bill support. Judging by history, he said, the real worry would be if she listened too much to people such as Keller.

“One of the things that can get a member of Congress in hot water in South Dakota is when it’s perceived that they are not defending the people of South Dakota in Washington,” Schaff said. “We’ve got agriculture, we’ve got public land and we’ve got a lot of veterans. Should one be perceived as not protecting those industries ... then one might run into trouble. I don’t see where she’s in that place right now.”